


Lessons and Rehearsals

by CMBYN (Pmzilla)



Series: Parallel Lives - Later, Peaches [1]
Category: Actor RPF, Call Me By Your Name (2017) RPF
Genre: CMBYN - Freeform, Call Me By Your Name (2017) - Freeform, Call me by your name, First Kiss, M/M, Pining, RPF
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-11
Updated: 2017-10-11
Packaged: 2019-01-16 02:36:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,740
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12333750
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pmzilla/pseuds/CMBYN
Summary: ....Perhaps that was what Luca wanted after all - for Tim to stop protecting himself  - because the film - at its heart of hearts - is about encountering what may be THE great love of your life before you have the life experience to shield any part of yourself away.Love as an immersive experience - a fusion with the beloved.





	Lessons and Rehearsals

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not saying it went down like this - I'm only saying that in a possible alternate universe where it did, indeed, go down - it might have gone something like this.

Another hour - and perhaps the piano piece Timothée was practising wouldn't sound so….plunky?

“No….allora...Timothée - Suonare ancora. Play it again”

Tim glances up at his teacher as he stretches his long fingers before attacking the Bach again. Midway through the piece, the door bursts open to reveal an enormous swirling force of nature disguised as a tall man in a chambray shirt. “Heeeey - are you Timmy? it's fantastic to finally meet you. I'm Armie”. Before Timothée can respond, Armie’s handshake pulls him to his feet and he is gathered into a tight hug.

Tim is a native New Yorker, half-French, and theatre-people to boot - hugging strangers isn't typically cause for alarm. But - not every hug is full-body pressed from top to toe, not every hug is preceded by a jolt of recognition in electric blue eyes,...in short, not every hug is from Armie Hammer - his leading man in the film, Call Me by Your Name. Armie releases the embrace, but not entirely. He slides his massive hands from Tim's shoulders down to his biceps and pauses - gently gripping Tim’s arms as they stare at each other. Tim is flustered - as though he were caught out.

“Great to meet you too…I - I’m in the middle of my piano lesson?”

“Of course, of course….I'll just….”, Armie gestures leaving.

“An hour,” Tim blurts out. “I mean - I'll be done here in an hour, then I can show you around town.”

The hesitancy in Armie’s grin disappears, “Good, great! That would be fantastic. In an hour - I'll see you in an hour, then”, Armie whirls out the door.

Timothée returns to the Bach, playing fluidly and with an undercurrent of passion that was previously missing. At the end of the piece, Tim looks up at his instructor who is observing with a curious expression,”Better?”

“Sì, e lo sai. Ma è un peccato che non stai suonando a Beethoven…”.

Tim smiles uncertainly. His teacher sighs, “Enough for today - ogni va, more Bach tomorrow”.

Tim grins, collecting his books, and rushes off to find Armie.

* * *

It's been a week, but it isn't getting any better. Tim runs his fingers through his curls. Life in Crema with Armie is a prolonged exercise in frustration. Every morning they visit S-- and drink espresso standing up. After Italian lessons, piano, sometimes Armie will join him for guitar….then dinner, always together - after which they return to one or the other’s flat for a movie, or to watch old Tyson fights, or run lines. Hours and beers later, they are still talking on the couch - each gesture moving them closer - but they never quite touch. Tim wants that touch so badly - like an itch under the skin that waxes and wanes but never vanishes completely.

Not that they never touch - in public spaces, Armie is physical, expansive - a goddamned tease - who finds a hundred daily occasions to brush Tim’s hand or ruffle his hair. If Timothee eats pain au chocolate, Armie’s thumb wipes the crumbs from his lips. In pictures, Armie pulls Tim to him tightly. Armie is always just outside of Tim’s personal space - brushing, patting, rubbing, stroking - nothing anyone would notice when taken in isolation. When considered together, however - Timmy’s wayward body reads Armie’s carnal intent, even as his mind rationalizes another ‘accidental’ or worse ‘meaningless’ touch between them. Until they are alone, and then? Nothing.

* * *

Three weeks before shooting begins in earnest, and they are going to see the Villa. In the back of Luca’s Rover, Armie presses the length of his thigh against Tim while chatting with Luca in the front seat. Luca describes the pool and grassy area behind the house. Armie leans forward to continue speaking; he places his hand firmly on Timmy's knee - thankfully too far away to feel the flood of arousal pooling in Tim’s groin. Tim shifts a messenger bag into his lap with a suppressed sigh which makes Armie catch Tim’s eye. Armie loses the thread of his conversation as they roll to a stop on the gravel drive. Tim looks away sharply as Luca turns to them, “So - a quick tour, then I thought we might do a little rehearsing?”

“Yeah, that sounds great, fantastic.”

Tim nods enthusiastically as he attempts to will away the first stirrings of an erection before ambling into the villa behind Armie.

The tour is perfunctory; then rehearsals begin. Armie asks Luca where they should begin and Luca smiles mischievously, “I was thinking...page 62?”  

Both actors flip to the scene, where the only direction is: _Elio and Oliver kiss._

 _“_ Come, we will rehearse back here”, Luca leads them to a sunny patch of grass in the yard, “the two of you - lay down. Okay,...whenever you're ready”.

Armie smiles at Tim in a friendly way, “Alright - you wanna do this thing?”. Tim takes any personal feelings for Armie that have developed over the past weeks and mentally shoves them away. He can do this - he is really good at doing this - it’s his job. Tim looks at Armie and tries to let the character flood into him. They stretch out next to each other in the grass. With a look at Luca for direction, he smiles and says, “Go ahead.”

Tim inclines his head towards Armie; they brush their lips together once, twice, then move to kiss closer. The action is limited - they hold their bodies apart - Tim imagines the camera tracking closely on every eyelash and dials his motion back even further. Not even a minute passes before they hear Luca, “No, no, no...No. You are not feeling this. You need to _feel_ this. A kiss is not just performed with the lips - when you want someone - when you love someone - a kiss is a surrender to sensuality that encompasses your entire body, as the shot will encompass your entire body. Show me that. Bring the truth of Elio and Oliver to this kiss. _Sensual -_ a kiss that is larger than the two of you - a moment that is _completely immersive_ for you and for the audience”.

 _Immersive,_ Tim thinks. _I like that_. He takes a moment to consider - there is no way to give Luca what he is looking for without fusing something of himself to the character of Elio. Perhaps that was what Luca wanted after all - for Tim to stop protecting himself  - because the film - at its heart of hearts - is about encountering what may be THE great love of your life before you have the life experience to shield any part of yourself away. Love as an immersive experience - a fusion with the beloved.

“Timmy?”, the way Armie says his name suggests that it has been repeated more than once, “Do you need a minute?”.

“No - I’m good. Just processing what Luca said - we can try again”, Tim smiles softly, catching Armie's eye, then takes a deep breath.

“OK, sure - yeah, let’s...let’s try again”, Armie replies, a bit breathlessly. Tim nods and they begin.

It's freeing - kissing a powerfully built man and the full body shot opens the door to greater physicality between them. No need to hold back, no reason to gentle the more violent feelings that surface. Tim-as-Elio initiates the kiss, using his entire body to attack Oliver. He channels every frustrated evening spent running lines, every ounce of desire stoked through the hundred public touches, every private rebuff - measuring and maintaining the distance between them. Armie-as-Oliver begins hesitantly, his lips tense….but soon he breaks down and is kissing Elio unreservedly. Elio’s hand trails down Oliver’s chest - brushing against his nipples. There is an electric moment, a shock to the system - and Armie pulls back from the kiss; their eyes connect. A beat of time passes - Timmy frantically searches Armie’s face for signs of rejection, even a kind one. But rejection is not what he sees there.

This time Armie reaches out, his hands slide down to Timmy's biceps - as they did that first afternoon - he pulls Timmy to him. The angle of his head is different, as is the set of his jaw. He rolls Tim over in the grass and holds him down. Tim realises the transformation that occurred: before, Elio was kissing Oliver - now, he is kissing Armie.

 _Finally, finally, finally,_ Tim’s mind supplies unhelpfully. Unwilling or perhaps unable to resist Armie’s insistent desire, Tim surges up into his arms. He cannot suppress the sound, caught somewhere between a moan and a sigh, from deep in his throat. Tim is both ashamed and exultant as he feels his body responding; a shift in Armie’s position reveals that Tim is not alone in his response.

On instinct, Timothée weaves his hands into Armie’s hair a pulls; when he does he can feel Armie’s cock twitch against him. He flips Armie on his back and reasserts control of the kiss for a moment. As he mouths Armie’s chiselled jaw, Tim wants to whisper - wants to quote Marizia’s line, “Sei duro, duro…”. But recalling the script’s line brings another thought to the forefront of Timothée’s consciousness, _Luca! This is all supposed to be a rehearsal for Luca._ Tim releases Armie’s hair, then shifts his weight back into his legs and regretfully pulls away from him. Armie pursues Timmy’s mouth until they are both upright - Tim kneeling across Armie’s lap - his arms keeping Timmy from fully slipping away. It takes another moment for Armie to process the same thought, _the rehearsal for Luca_. Both glance towards the wall where Luca sat, a sheepish expression on their faces. But the director is nowhere to be found. Tim breaks the silence with a bashful giggle, “Do you think we were that bad?”.

“Never”, says Armie, with a lambent gaze at his co-star.

Tim stares pointedly at the notch at the base of Armie’s neck as he answers, “But?”

“But nothing. Rehearsal is officially over - come with me to dinner?”

“Are you hungry?”, Timmy asks coyly as he slides off Armie’s lap.

“Starving - sometimes even for food.”

With that oblique statement, Armie stands and offers his hand to Timothée - pulling him up with such force that he crashes into Armie chest. It does not appear to be entirely unpremeditated.

Timmy pauses, wrapped in Armie's embrace. He rests his head against Armie’s chest just long enough to hear the thundering pulse of a man about to step off the edge into the unknown and for that pulse to echo with his own.


End file.
